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I Don't Really Care Where You Are

According to my incoming stream of status updates, there are an increasing number of you who suffer from a major case of Waldo Envy (you’re convinced people care where you are).

You can see the syndrome spread via location-based social networking platforms such as Foursquare, Gowalla, Yelp and soon a host of others large and small. Basically, these sites let you update your status by “checking in” somewhere. You can then find others who are nearby and ultimately add to a growing pile of location-based data. Some of the services like Foursquare provide a gaming element and you can earn points and become the “Mayor” of a certain place.

I’m probably missing something and I’ve talked to plenty of folks who use and love these location-based realtime sharing services (Foursquare just passed a million check-ins a week), but I’m still checking out of this activity until someone convinces me that I need to know that you’re picking up a box of Ho Hos at 7-Eleven.

Maybe, like many of these things, it’s a matter of knowing when to share. Here’s list of six location-based “check ins” that might be worth posting.

– I Checked in to Beyonce

– Just checked in to a lawless region of Pakistan: guy next to me is about 6’4 and seems to be rolling around a dialysis machine.

– Checked in to the afterlife: gift bag includes an iPhone that uses Verizon.

– I just checked in to check-in rehab.

– Just checked in to a sealed box: found Schrödinger’s cat smoking a Lucky Strike and watching Jersey Shore.

– I just became Mayor of your wife.

This post originally appeared in Tweetage Wasteland which has been merged with NextDraft.

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